at, his belt on properly, but his blouse pockets stuffed out
beyond it with six months' correspondence, and his matted and bleached
head of hair, through the vain effort to comb it, resembling the heads
of Feejee Islanders, in Sunday-school books. A smile played around the
lips of the gentlemanly old Massachusetts Colonel, who presided over the
Court, as he surveyed him upon entering, and a titter ran around the
Board, especially among some of the young West-Pointers. The Colonel's
face colored, and the Judge Advocate's eyes glowed as if he had a soft
block. But Tom was a singed cat; he always was a slovenly fellow, you
know, and he turned out to be a file for the viper.

"'Colonel,' said the Judge Advocate haughtily, 'have you any officers
who are prepared to vouch for the character and credibility of this
witness, as I see he is but a private?'

"'Yes, sir, if the Court please,' retorted the Colonel
indignantly,--then remembering how this same Judge Advocate had upon
former occasions affected to despise privates, he added: 'His character
and credibility are quite as good as those of half the shoulder-strapped
gentry of the Corps.'

"'Colonel,' said the President, blandly, 'there is an old rule requiring
privates to be vouched for, rarely insisted upon, at this day, however,'
casting, as he said this, a half reproachful look upon the Judge
Advocate; 'but we desire you to understand that your word is as good as
that of any officer before this Court.'

"The Colonel vouched for him, and Tom was examined, and contradicted
still further than his own cross-examination had done, the statement of
the Adjutant, besides snubbing the Judge Advocate handsomely. A string
of witnesses, from our Brigadier down to all the line officers of the
command, was then offered to prove character, but the Court very
formally told the Colonel that a superior officer, the Commanding
General of the Division, had already testified to this, and that this
rendered the testimony of officers inferior in rank quite superfluous.
So you see from this and Tom's case, Justice don't go it blind in
Courts-Martial, but keeps one eye open to see whether the witness has
shoulder-straps on or not."

"But, Bill," inquired a lawyer in the crowd, "did not the Colonel offer
to prove that the Regiment was amply supplied with clothing, and that
the order was unreasonable, and that it was not therefore a lawful
order, as the law is supposed to be founded upon reaso